A Day In My Hometown ! Tooele Utah !
I hope you all have a had a good day, and a great week.
I had a lousy week, for the most part.
I want to tell you about two good things that I did, one to start, and one to finish my week.
By now, all of you have heard about the death of PFC Jordan Byrd of Grantsville. Jordan was a combat medic who joined the Army to get some experience before going to medical school to become a doctor. Jordan was killed by sniper fire while going to the aid of another soldier. To my knowledge, he's the first soldier from Tooele County killed in the line of duty in many years. At 19yrs old, he leaves behind a wife and a month old son. Happy stuff, right?
On Monday morning, Berna and I were at a meeting at the Chamber offices when the long procession of vehicles, including many law enforcement, military and a number of "Patriot Riders" a group of motorcyclists, many of them Veterans, came past on their way to Tate's Mortuary. As I posted on Facebook at the time, it was a mixed feeling of sorrow and pride to see the sight of so many people and so many flags out to honor someone who gave their life defending our rights in a faraway land.
As the rest of the week went on, it just got lousier and lousier for me. Just never could seem to put together a good day. Meetings that should have gone smoothly, didn't. Meetings that shouldn't have gone smoothly were even worse than expected.
Then a couple of days ago, word came that a radical Baptist congregation from the Midwest was planning on coming to Tooele County to protest at Jordan's funeral. The issue for this "Christian" (please make note of my implied sarcasm) group was that our soldiers were dying as God's punishment for the rampant homosexuality and other deviancy in our Nation.
I could go on and on about the runaway intolerance that is taking place in our society, including our intolerance for those we perceive to be intolerant. It appears as if we will really struggle to get this epidemic solved. But, that isn't for this "sermon".
When this rumor came out, many people were, rightly in my opinion, concerned, to put it mildly. The Patriot Riders declared that they would be here to protect the family, to shield them from the hateful vitriol likely to come from this group. Frankly, I was concerned about their ability to do so, especially as I'd seen the 20 or so riders on Monday.
What I didn't count on was the "viral" nature this rumor took on. I started hearing about other groups that might come to help. Vicki Griffith (a member of the Patriot Riders, along with her husband Andy) sent me a message inviting Berna and I to participate. My understanding was, we were to surround the Church where the funeral would take place, then escort the body to the Grantsville Cemetery. I wasn't sure how this small number of bikers was going to achieve this, at least without violence. remember, the idiots protesting enjoy the same right to Free Speech that PFC Byrd died defending.
Imagine my pleasure when I arrived at the Veterans Park this morning to see several dozen bikers, with more arriving by the minute. Besides Patriot Riders, I saw Christian Riders, Sundowners, Bandidos, off duty Police and Sheriff's Deputies. Plus, that most dreaded of gangs, 4 Realtors! Denney's had coffee. By 11am there were over 200 bikers headed to the Church, which we in fact did surround, all of us holding American Flags for the next 3 hrs until the conclusion of the service.
It was only as we escorted PFC Byrd's body, and family to Grantsville that I truly began to see the magic. As we moved slowly down Coleman, we saw more and more people coming out of their houses, many with flags. As we turned down Hwy 36, cars came to a stop and the drivers got out of their cars and watched, with their hands over their hearts. All the way to Grantsville, we saw and waved to more and more people, many with their children, many holding enormous American flags, everyone with their hands over their hearts. I'm not ashamed to say there were tears running down my cheeks as I rode, it was that moving, even to an old cynic like me. Finally, as we turned onto Main St, I saw before me a sea of Red, White and Blue, as literally THOUSANDS of people of every age stood 3 and 4 deep for the trip to the other end of town. They came to the middle of the road, leaving a narrow lane for us to pass through, all with their hands over their heart. I expect I'll never again see something as stirring as this ride, and the Military Ceremony at the graveside didn't lower the bar a bit.
So, what does this chick flick of a novel have to do with the Republican Party? Not one thing. If you have the opportunity tonight or tomorrow, watch the news coverage. Talk to your friends who were there. But, more than anything else, I want you to think about that 19 year old young man. I want you to think about his wife, and his son that he got to see born less than a month ago, never to see again. As Precinct Chairs, I've asked you to get out the vote for Republican Candidates. As citizens of this amazing Country, I want you to get out the vote...period. I don't care who you or anyone else votes for. I want you to vote, to support that young man, who may have never had a chance to vote himself. But, he died so that you and I can. We must.
As you go about your lives these next 10 days or so, I want you to think about Jordan Byrd every time you talk to someone that hasn't voted, or says they may not. Tell them about this amazing young man. He changed my life today. Maybe my week wasn't so bad after all. I voted. Enjoy your weekend, and thanks for all your hard work. Chris
Published Sunday, October 24, 2010 5:13 AM by Chris & Berna Sloan
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